When I was about 9, we moved to a few acres in California's Central valley. Every spring clouds of birds would nest in the pine trees that my grandparents had planted in the backyard, mostly Brewer's blackbirds, scrub jays, the occasional mocking bird. And every time we had a strong wind I would race our beloved calico cat, Spicy, to reach the baby birds that would fall to the ground.

Sometimes I even made it in time, and my dad would help me mix up a little peanut butter watered down enough to go through a dropper. They were so incredibly fragile, sometimes they were so young you could actually see through their skin, pretty gross. But I couldn't stop scooping up those poor little things, no matter how many times I faced the inevitable failures. Yes, I'm afraid most of them died. BUT...one time we actually suceeded. And seeing that scruffy little scrub jay fly off made all the other times pale in comparison!

As for this gorgeous little screech owl, it was the bright spot on an awful day back in January of 2008, which you can read about (and see more owl photos) here. That was the beginning of a long and horrible sheep killing spree by coyotes that went on for several months, and at the time I published the owl post, there was no end in sight. Fortunately things have changed, and you can read about how here. Thanks to Daisy and Marta, our amazing livestock guardian dogs, we sleep much more soundly at night and (knock on wool) haven't lost any sheep to coyotes in over a year and a half.

Watching that owl was one of my favorite farm moments, and I'll never forget it. To this day, the son of the donkey peddling cowboy, who was just four when he and his dad stopped by and saw the owl, still brings it up nearly every time I see him, which makes the experience just that much more special.

Congrats, Nicolita, Now that you, and not I, have won the book, I definitely need to get out and purchase a copy for myself.

Susan; When we were on a farm with goats, and coyotes around that occasionally got to them, we were told to get a Llama; that it would protect the goats. We did and Jo-Llama did his job. Never saw another Coyote on our farm. All they need is shade from the sun and they are pretty much okay in the winter. Check it out!

The owl is gorgeous, love to hear them! We have coyotes in our back yard and we live on the edge of a subdivision! Llamas are great protectors; I know of an alpaca farm that has llamas for that very reason. Great post and congrats to the winner!

Owls are amazing creatures! I remember camping way up north and woke in the wee morning hours to the songs of a group of owls in the forest. It was one of the most majestic camping experiences I've ever had. Beautiful pic.

I enjoy your web site so much. The interesting and colorful photo's, the recipes and the down home feel. We gave up the city life also, after 20 years serving the country in the Air Force. Now we have a garden and I use and enjoy the helpful hints from your site, to plan and decide what to plant. We also have chickens and recycle their 'fertilizer' in the garden and then enjoy a good fried egg sandwich. Isn't God good? I am looking forward to your next post. LindaOlympia, Washington

Recently a friend on Facebook was telling about the time an owl came and perched outside of her family's big picture window where they were all gathered around a table. They were amazed at this unusual sight. However, within a short time two of the people at the table died unexpectedly. This brought up interesting commentary about how seeing owls is a harbinger of death. I believe this is supposedly in indian folklore as well. Recalling your precious owl pictures I returned here to see if anything bad happened to you following the sighting and, indeed, it had. Wow!! And I used to think it would be so fortunate to see this beautiful creature. Now I know differently.

January 2013 update: I know word verification is a big pain, but it's the only way I can stop the ridiculous number of anonymous spam comments I get every day. I don't want to require commenters to be registered Blogger or Open ID users because I know many of you aren't. Thanks so much for your understanding!

Hi! Thanks for visiting Farmgirl Fare and taking the time to write. While I'm not always able to reply to every comment, I receive and enjoy reading them all.

Your feedback is greatly appreciated, and I especially love hearing about your experiences with my recipes. Comments on older posts are always welcome!

Please note that I moderate comments, so if I'm away from the computer it may be a while before yours appears.

I try my best to answer all questions, though sometimes it takes me a few days. And sometimes, I'm sorry to say, they fall through the cracks, and for that I sincerely apologize.

If you're waiting for a reply to your comment and have a Blogger profile (it's free to create one) you can check the NOTIFY ME box that is below and receive all follow up comments to just this specific post via email.

I look forward to hearing from you and hope you enjoy your e-visits to our farm!